Bengal: TMC takes early lead in Kaliganj bypoll as counting underway
Kolkata (PTI): The Trinamool Congress took an early lead over its rivals as counting for the by-election to Kaliganj assembly seat in West Bengal's Nadia district was underway on Monday.
After the first round of counting, TMC candidate Alifa Ahamed secured 4,545 votes, while her nearest rival, Congress candidate Kabil Uddin Shaikh, backed by the CPI(M), bagged 1,830 votes. BJP nominee Ashis Ghosh was trailing in third position, securing 1,112 votes, election officials said.
Counting began at 8:00 am with the postal ballots. The process is underway peacefully, they added.
The bypoll was necessitated following the sudden demise of sitting TMC MLA Nasiruddin Ahamed in February this year. His daughter, Alifa Ahamed, has been fielded by the party to retain the seat.
Polling for the by-election was held on Thursday, with a voter turnout of 69.85 per cent recorded till 5:00 pm. Barring a few isolated incidents, voting remained largely peaceful.
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Ruturaj scores unbeaten 67 as CSK beat MI by eight wickets
Chennai (PTI): Ruturaj Gaikwad struck his second successive half-century of the season as Chennai Super Kings cruised to a commanding eight-wicket win over Mumbai Indians in an Indian Premier League match here on Saturday.
Gaikwad remained unbeaten on 67 off 48 balls, stitching an unbroken 98-run stand for the third wicket with Kartik Sharma (54 not out) to comfortably chase down the target of 160 after Mumbai were stopped at 159 for seven.
Mumbai Indians' struggles continued as they only have two wins in nine matches, remaining on four points, while CSK climbed to eight points from nine games.
Earlier, MI's innings never quite gained momentum, with Naman Dhir the lone bright spot with a 57. He walked in after Will Jacks fell for one in the second over and added 40 runs for the third wicket with Suryakumar Yadav (21).
For CSK, left-arm spinner Noor Ahmad (2/26) was the pick of the bowlers, removing Ryan Rickelton (37) and Tilak Varma (5), while Anshul Kamboj (3/32) impressed with an effective spell.
Brief scores:
Mumbai Indians 159 for 7 in 20 overs (Ryan Rickelton 37, Naman Dhir 57; Noor Ahmed 2/26, Anshul Kamboj 3/32).
Chennai Super Kings: 160 for 2 in 18.1 overs (Ruturaj Gaikwad 67 not out, Urvil Patel 24, Kartik Sharma 54 not out; Jasprit Bumrah 1/20).
